Daniele J. Spirandelli
Daniele Spirandelli is an assistant professor of coastal policy and community development in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, with a joint appointment in the Sea Grant College Program at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. Prior to joining UH faculty, Daniele was part of a multi-disciplinary team in the Urban Ecology Research Laboratory at the University of Washington while pursuing a PhD in Urban Design and Planning and a Masters in Landscape Architecture. She also earned a BA in International Development and Social Change from Clark University. Much of her passion for interdisciplinary research has grown out of her involvement in scientifically grounded urban ecological research, in an ongoing effort to understand environmental change that is caused by human action and how these changes impact human communities.
Daniele’s research follows two related paths: the relationship between urban development patterns and environmental conditions, and human’s response to environmental change, whether through individual behavior, community restoration efforts or through formal institutional arrangements. To this end, she focuses on three substantive areas of investigation: 1) characterizing the relationship between urban development patterns and environmental quality; 2) examining feedbacks between environmental change and human behavior; and 3) developing community-based indicators for ecosystem health and human well-being. She uses the emerging science of urban ecology as her primary framework for examining the dynamics of human-natural systems and draws on theories of complex adaptive systems, risk perception, and resilience. Developing relevant scientific information and knowledge for citizens, policy makers and planners to make decisions is the basis for her research.
Daniele’s most recent research examines landscape patterns of urbanization and alternative wastewater infrastructures, and how these patterns interact to impact near-shore ecosystems. She builds a more complex and nuanced understanding of urban landscape patterns by revealing the complex interactions between wastewater decisions, land use, and near-shore water quality. The integration of land use planning and alternative wastewater technologies offers a promising mechanism through which urban areas can more effectively protect near-shore ecologies.
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2525 Correa Road, HIG 211
Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96822